If you have a Facebook account chances are you’ve seen the powerful Nomakeupselfie trend circulate. At this very moment in time (25th March), the viral campaign has only been running for 6 days but has already managed to raise over £8 MILLION for Cancer research.

All of this money from a very simple premise. Women post pictures of themselves with no make up on, to both raise awareness of breast cancer, and to pledge £3 to Cancer Research. Included in their posts are nominations for selected friends to do the same. Users are banding together to post images which are perceivably brave to show.

So why has there been such a fuss surrounding it?

There are a number of reasons as to why Nomakeupselfie has made itself into a viral hit.

1. Altruism – Viral campaigns revolving around doing some good in the world such as donating to charity, tend to do very well on the internet. Not only does the user feel like they are taking part in something worthwhile instead of spending their time on the internet watching pugs rolling about for hours at a time, it also makes people look good on public scale. Everyone can see how much good that individual is doing.
2. Interactivity – At the core of Nomakeupselfie is a need for the user to interact. Anyone who is nominated can take part (including any other gender if they so wish). Added to that, selfies are very popular at the moment. Utilising current trends always helps in pushing a viral campaign further.
3. Sharing – The need to share your selfie just makes the campaign spread further and further. The meme takes a long time to stagnate as there is new content on a daily basis.

Thanks to all of you who have donated because of the #nomakeupselfie trend. We are overwhelmed by your support! pic.twitter.com/GjH38dufuV

— Cancer Research UK (@CR_UK) March 19, 2014

Conclusion

Even when most people who have been targeted by this campaign have already taken part, more outlandish selfie campaigns are appearing off the back of it. Some Men are turning the tables on the campaign and pampering themselves with a bit of eyeshadow and foundation before sharing and nominating their friends. Whilst others are taking part in perhaps a more controversial campaign where they take a selfie of their *ahem* members in a sock and try to nominate their friends to do the same. All in the name of charity!

The success of this viral campaign just goes to show memes aren’t just throw away garbage parts of the internet. They have the power to do a whole lot of good.

If you want to support cancer research, and really, why wouldn’t you? Text Beat to 70099 to easily donate £3 to the cause.